Lycanthropy: A Guide To Werewolves
by Arow
Summary: 11 year old Remus wandering through the castle comes across a book he never expected to find.... one-short


A.N- This was up before but I put it in a story thing, one short, hope you like it, info on werewolves cant be bad right?

Disclaimer: Don't own anything mentioned from Harry Potter, and the info is from all over everywhere!

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It was a warm autumn day, and the refreshing breeze was blowing through the castle that was the world famous Hogwarts.

It was the first Quidditch match of the season and all of the school was out side enjoying the weather while it lasted, the excited shouts from the Quidditch stands could be herd all the way up at the castle where a lone figure wandered the corridors.

The first year looked worst for were and seemed to be overly tiered wand worn. His name was Remus Lupin, the first and only exception to the school of witchcraft and wizardry, with his monthly ailment. Remus Lupin was a werewolf, and had been for as long as he could remember, it was only through Headmaster Dumbledore's kindness that the boy was aloud to be educated in the art of wizardry.

He hated and feared what he was, yet never really knew what he was, he found it hard to explain, not that he ever had explained it to anybody out of fear of what they would do if they found out what he was...That was probably why he had no friends, well the boys in his dorm were nice enough to him, but again fear of what he was kept him away from people.

His parents had always been supportive of him and say his condition as more of an illness than the reality of him turning into a monster every month.

Stifling a yawn he aimlessly wandered down the corridor, with no destination planed.

He ended up standing in front of the library, suddenly remembering his love for books, they had been his only friends growing up he remembered his mother reading to him, then he read the books himself, within their pages he could lose himself from his tormented reality.

And being him he never turned down such a good opportunity to read.

When he stepped inside the book filled room, it was deadly quiet not a sound could be herd, save his tentative footsteps.

He gazed around the room the rows of book cases looked like dominos one well placed kick and the lot could all come toppling down.

He walked up to one of the many book filled shelves, noticing the librarian sitting at a desk at the other end of the room sorting out the many volumes piled about her.

It didn't matter he was good at ignoring people and they were good at ignoring him, that was the way it had always been.

He ran his hand across the leather bound books glancing idly at the titles written down their spines.

He stopped at one book, it was blanc with no title bound in a soft black leather, he drew it from the shelf and opened if curiously. His eyes widened, he never expected this, he started to read with fascination:

Lycathropy

A Guide to Werewolves.

Lycanthropy is devised from the Greek _lukos _wolf and _anthropos _man.

Werewolves have been known over the ages, for any person can become a werewolf by different means, there is the most common through a bite, sustained by such a beast, you can be born of a werewolf, or it is even said that falling in love with a werewolf you can be charmed and turned to the soul of the wolf forever. What ever the way it is known as a curse, one with no cure.

"Werewolves are dominated by the moon and its phases such as the ocean which is one thing that will calm the spirit of the wolf, and so man by day yet when the moon is at its fullest and its rays wash over the earth, that man will be no more for the spirit of the wolf will endure that night till the morning rays creep over the earth and the wolf is man once more."

As the legend states, once a month when the moon is full the man will be the beast with a lust for blood. Yet this bloodthirsty nature is all down to the first werewolf that set foot in the world of men, this werewolf was Lycaos an ancient king. It is said that the god Zeus came to the court of Lycaos, and Lycaos known for his wisdom realized that it was the great god, and the only way to kill a god was to feed them the flesh of a human. So Lycaos seeing his chance had his own child killed and to be fed to Zeus, but on receiving his meal the god realized what it was and was sickened by the act of Lycaos, so punishing him by making him into a werewolf and to live forever knowing what he had done trapped in the body of a wolf for all time.

A werewolf could easily savage any human they come across on the full moon, but the thing that makes a werewolf only inflict a bite is the taste of innocence, for it is poison to them but the one bitten is then cursed to be a werewolf.

No-one can imagine what it is like to transform into a werewolf, it is described to be extremely painful as your body changes into the wolf and to have your mind, slowly torn away and replaced with that of the beasts. If the wolf is kept confined and away from humans to bite, then it will turn its rage upon anything it can find even its self which results in the person that is left in the morning in great pain with the wounds the only testament left by the wolfs restless spirit.

People who are werewolves generally live twice as long as humans, due to there sells constantly being regenerated which makes them less prone to illness and infection, but can have a its bad effects the person in question can easily anger and get agitated easily, more affected by unruly emotions a week before the full moon, yet over the years emotions such as these, can be controlled and made less obvious.

Also different kinds of moon can affect the wolf, such as a red moon can make the spirit more volatile and aggressive, yet the harvest moon can make the spirit peaceful or at least less vicious, but one moon the most rare moon which only appears once every several thousand years or so, is the blue moon the transformation still takes place yet the man stays in control, they retain there mind for one night and are not a danger to anyone.

It is also said that the company of other animals can calm the wolf especially animagus these being friends of the man during day letting them fight back the wolfs spirit and take control.

Although werewolves are not without weakness, for instance blood of an innocent is like a poison and repels them, but the most lethal thing to a werewolf is silver as in any form they are allergic to it causing burning when it comes in contact with the skin, and the only way to kill a werewolf is to peace to skin of the werewolf in question causing the silver to get into the blood stream causing excruciating pain and eventually death when it reaches the heart.

Remus closed the book and looked at it again, he really never thought he would find such a thing just randomly on the shelf.

Then he thought back to what Professor Dumbledore had said about the magic of the castle how it protected the students and kept those with evil intent away, and how it had a strange way of showing you to things you would not necessarily find otherwise.

He looked at the small black book, then at the room around him. 'Well' He thought to himself as he put the small volume back in its proper place, 'You learn something new every day' He left with a small smile on his face as he went to meet the rest of the school for lunch, and find out the victor of the match.

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A.N- I think the end sucked. I thought of doing it with Sirius, just after they would have figured out about Remus, kind of where he got the Animagus idea from, oh well maybe I'll redo it at some point. Well RR! 


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